THREE MINUTE HEROES: POSITIVE VIBRATION REGGAE FESTIVAL

Winner of ‘Best New Festival’ at the UK Festival Awards in 2016, ‘Positive Vibration’ is back to shake the windows and rattle the walls of the Baltic Triangle this weekend. Who’s on? What’s on? What can you expect? Get the skinny here. By Alan O’Hare.

The vibes are heavy for this year’s ‘Positive Vibration’… heavy in terms of line-up, that is.

The festival of reggae, winner of ‘Best New Festival’ at the UK Festival Awards in 2016, is bringing out the big bass subwoofers for 2017. The Selecter and sound system king Jah Shaka are headlining at the Baltic Triangle-based event and with the likes of Don Letts, Scientist and Channel One providing a substantial supporting cast, it’s bound to be a big weekend.

The festival is still a baby on the local calendar, but certainly ready to punch above its weight. “Growing up in Tottenham, the first type of music I was into was dub and reggae – so it’s great to see some real heavyweights on this line-up,” says Paul Duhaney, Africa Oyé artistic director and Positive Vibration spokesperson. “Don Letts is a living legend, Dennis Bovell a real pioneer and I remember buying everything Scientist did when I was growing up – just for the artwork.”